Media Profiles

Television
TV Imedi

Imedi TV was founded on December 24, 2001 and it began broadcasting on March 15, 2003. The TV channel broadcasts countrywide and along with a general broadcasting license (№B16), it also owns a satellite license.

The channel was founded by late tycoon Badri Patarkatsishvili, who held executive positions at various Russian companies in the 1990s (LogoVAZ, Russia's largest automobile dealer), as well as Russian TV-6 and ORTB channels. In 2008, Badri Patarkatsishvili ran for president in Georgia.

Imedi TV changed hands after riot police raided it on November 7, 2007. On November 13, 2007 the channel was transferred to News Corp Europe Inc. with 100% management right; later on August 27, 2009, the TV channel became wholly owned by Georgian Media Production Group, where former Economy Minister Giorgi Arveladze of the National Movement owned 45% of shares. After Georgian Dream came to power as a result of the parliamentary elections in 2012, Imedi TV was returned to the Patarkatsishvili family at a symbolic price.

July 5, 2019- Georgian Media Production Group“ Ltd. - Ina Gudavadze, The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 100%, General director - Eldar Mdinaradze;

July 12, 2017- Georgian Media Production Group“ Ltd. - Ina Gudavadze, The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 100%

On 29 August 2015 Imedi TV issued the statement on suspension of political talk show and presenting them to the viewers in the new format in 2016.

Producers and journalists of these two programs – Reaktsia and Imedis Kvira – issued joint statement in the social network, saying that suspending commercially beneficial programs in the beginning of the TV season, 1 year before the election raised suspicions. The editors and an anchor Inga Grigolia stated that Imedi’s decision was a result of political influence. Their suspicions are confirmed by the fact that the journalists learned about the decision of the programs’ closure from TV, despite the fact that the programs had their new preview for the new fall season already recorded.

Imedi TV made its own statement in response, claiming that the journalists’ comments were baseless.

Inga Grigolia spoke about the government’s interference in the editorial issues even before the closure of her program. 2015 In March 2015 she publicly stated that the parliamentary faction of the Georgian Dream demanded from Imedi editors not to cover in Reaktsia the protest rally planned by the opposition National Movement for 21 March.

While speaking about the closure of Imedi programs with Rustavi 2 journalists, representative of the Georgian Dream parliamentary majority Gogi Topadze said, that the anchors had been warned a number of times and that nobody could be forgiven for partiality.

Gogi Topadze, Georgian Dream: “The channel began to only criticize and insult the government and of course they had to take some measures. They have been warned a number of times, that they should be impartial, I also told them this a number of times. Such partiality is unforgivable.”

Inga Grigolia also claimed that Irakli Rukhadze who is involved in Maestro TV Channel ownership dispute and runs businesses of the family of Patarkatsihvili (owner of Imedi TV) was connected to her dismissal.

Ten opposition parties outside the Parliament made a statement on the programs’ closure, stating that closure of commercially profitable programs with high ratings could not be logically explained. They called on the international community to “pay attention to the increasing manifestations of authoritarianism in Georgia” .

According to the TV ratings measurement company TVMR data for Georgia, the talk show Reaktsia was among the 10 best TV programs of the year in the ratings for 2014.

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